News Scan

Wisconsin DP. Here is a virtually final tally from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, showing the measure prevailed 55.5 to 45.5. The county-by-county tally shows that the measure prevailed in all but four counties.

Jessica's Law. California voters yesterday approved Proposition 83, a wide ranging initiative regarding sex offenders. David Kravets of AP reports that U.S. District Judge Susan Illston "issued a temporary restraining order against the residency requirements of Proposition 83." This refers to the most ill-conceived and problematic of Prop. 83's provisions, prohibiting convicted sex offenders from living within 2000 feet of any school or park, a restriction that blocks off many cities in their entirety.

Sniper Sentenced Multiple murderer Lee Boyd Malvo, who along with his mentor John Allen Mohammad, killed 10 people and wounded three in the Washington, DC area in 2002, was sentenced to life in prison by a Maryland judge today according to an Associated Press story by Stephen Manning.

Protester Arrest An anti-abortion protester was arrested this morning after he began yelling during oral argument in the United States Supreme Court case of Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood The protester has been charged under a law that criminalizes those who deliver "a harangue or oration". A conviction carries a 60 day jail sentence as reported by the Associated Press.

Election The colorful Mayor of Oakland, Jerry Brown, has been elected California Attorney General. The state's former Governor Moonbeam defeated GOP Senator Chuck Poochigian for the job as the state's top law enforcement officer. Details about the election can be found in a story in today's San Francisco Chronicle by Jim Herron Zamora.

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1 Comment

Ultimately, I think the solution to sex offenders has to be longer incarceration for the dangerous. People who commit violent sexual offenses are extremely dangerous, and while there is a possibility of redemption for some of them, the risk to society at large is far too great to let them out after sentences as long as even 30 years, as the Dru Sjodin case can show.

Of course, the problem now is what to do about violent sexual offenders who are on the streets.